Peat

Partly decayed bog vegetation, harvested mainly for potting and growing media, and once burned for fuel, now curbed as a carbon store.

Construction · No. 84

• Not on a critical list

The compost in your garden pot may hold bog moss that took thousands of years to build up.

Chart: Illustration: Peat

Where it comes from

Chart: Map of where it comes from

In waterlogged, acidic bogs, mosses and reeds rot so slowly that layers pile up over thousands of years. Bogs are drained, milled and dried. World output was 17 Mt in 2025.

Three things to know

1. Finland holds about 6 billion t of the world's 13 billion t of peat reserves, enough for about 765 years at 2025 output.
2. Canada supplied 95% of US peat imports in 2021-24, and the US imports about 80% of what it uses.
3. Global peatland volume is shrinking about 0.05% a year from harvesting and land development.

The journey

1. 1 BogWaterlogged, acidic fen or bog
2. 2 DrainageBog drained and vegetation stripped
3. 3 MillingSurface milled and sun-dried
4. 4 HarvestingVacuum harvested or cut in blocks
5. 5 BlendingScreened, blended and bagged
6. 6 UsesGrowing media, soil conditioner, fuel

Go deeper pick a tab to open it in full